Gopher Blog

A Gopher Spotlight

At the U of M, the opportunities are endless. In fact, one particular Gopher just received the opportunity of a lifetime. Her name is Ashley Nord, and she was recently named one of 32 Rhodes Scholars in the nation for 2008. As a Rhodes Scholar, Ashley receives a scholarship to study at Oxford, a prestigious college in England.

To be considered for this prominent award, the candidate should exemplify academic excellence. In this aspect, Ashley definitely makes the grade. At the U of M, she is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in global studies with a minor in Spanish studies and two Bachelor of Science degrees in physics and astrophysics. In both degrees, she is a summa cum lade candidate as well, the highest honor a student can graduate with from a university. She’s studied abroad in Merida, Venezuela and participated in multiple research projects at colleges throughout the nation.

Not only has Ashley excelled in the classroom, but she has helped the Gophers with her athletic skills too. As a member of the U of M Track and Field team from 2003-2008, she placed in several Big Ten championships in pole vaulting and managed to be named Academic All-Big Ten Honoree every year she was on the team. Talk about a well-rounded student!

At Oxford, Ashley plans to pursue a doctorate in condensed matter with the eventual goal of working in the field of biophysics. She also plans to continue her athleticism by pole vaulting on the Oxford track team and becoming a member of the Mountaineering Club.

As a Rhodes Scholar, Ashley will join other illustrious members with this honor like 42nd president of the United States, Bill Clinton.

Coming from a fellow Gopher, I congratulate Ashley Nord with all of her achievements. She’s going to make a big impact in the world, with great help from her U of M education.

~ Trisha

P.S. Want to learn more about Ashley and her achievements? Read about them here!

People of Color and the Mass Media: Journalism 3741

Exploring race in Journalism

Have you ever wondered about the day-to-day struggles that Robin Robinson and Ann Curry face as women of color on television? It’s a complicated topic filled with the potential for engaging talks. Luckily, at the University of Minnesota, you have the opportunity to explore this intriguing area of journalism through a class called People of Color and the Mass Media offered through the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

People of Color seeks to explore the important concept of race in today’s society. From newspapers and magazines to television and the Internet, issues regarding people of color in America are always present. This course seeks to give students the terminology to talk about topics related to people of color in the mass media and about race issues in society.

Miranda Brady and Catherine Squires are both professors of People of Color. They have a great passion for studying how people of color are represented in today’s media and enjoy talking about the topic with students. In People of Color, students can expect not only to challenge themselves with discussions on race, ethnicity, class, and gender but learn how it fits into today’s society as well as what it means for the future.

Students can also expect a diverse class atmosphere with guest speakers on different topics relating to the coursework such as rap and African dance. Assignments give students the opportunity to get out into the local community to experience an event that deals with issues of race.

Intrigued? Ready for a challenge? This course is available to students studying any major!

Want to know more?

• Learn more about the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
• Read more about how to major in Journalism.

Getting Involved (Part 2)

The month of November is going by quickly as the weather gets cooler and the leaves on the trees turn from vibrant green to warm shades of yellow, red, and orange. Like I’ve mentioned in past entries, this time of year can be busy for U of M students with papers and midterms. However, we also are busy with student organizations!

Another student organization that I am involved with is the Public Relations Student Society of America or PRSSA for short. It’s an organization for students interested in the area of Public Relations. Its work can range from anything to event planning, philanthropy work, writing for a newsletter, or working on a mach PR firm. Personally, I am a member of the philanthropy committee, and we just finished a month long clothing drive. It’s called Cotton: From Blue to Green, and its purpose is to collect 500 pieces of denim from students on campus that will be used in housing projects for Habitat for Humanity (click here for a link about Habitat for Humanity at the U of M). Now I know you must be thinking... how will a pair of jeans help to build a house? Well, the jeans and other pieces of denim that are collected will be shredded and turned into housing insulation. Pretty dandy if I do say so myself! It’s a great organization, and I’m proud to be working with it.... just another way that U of M students are gaining valuable experience for their future careers and giving back to the community at the same time. It’s the best of both worlds!

~ Trisha

Gopher Volleyball

I’m starting to get busy again as we get closer to Thanksgiving Break. But through all of my busyness, I remember to take time to have fun. Last Saturday evening, I attended my first Gopher volleyball game!

The atmosphere in the arena was incredible! The student section was close to the court, so I got to see the players up close as they spiked and served the volleyball. I found it very similar to a football game. There was loud cheering and exciting plays, and we sung the Minnesota Rouser, our school song, multiple times. Athletes from the Men’s and Women’s Gopher Basketball team were also there supporting their fellow athletes.

A neat aspect to Gopher volleyball is crowd involvement throughout the game. Each time a member of the volleyball team scores a point, the announcer exclaims, “Point U!” Because it is long-standing tradition, the crowd can anticipate the exclamation and shouts “Point U!” with the announcer while making their hands into a shape of the letter “U.” It’s a fun way to stay involved in the game while showing support for the team.

Here’s a picture of me supporting the team on Saturday night. In the picture, I have made my fingers into a “U.”







After this experience, I am already looking forward to my next game! Plus as a U of M student, admission to games is free! Pretty great!

Until next time...

~ Trisha

Homecoming Re-Cap

Last week was Homecoming, and it was a blast! The spirit on campus kept building and building until the parade, which was followed by the football game on Saturday. Here’s a re-cap of my favorite events from last week:

Flag Football
It was a chilly night for flag football action, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way! Cheering on my sorority sisters while they played some quality football was a great way to take a break from studying.

Check out some photos from flag football night:



This is one of my sorority sisters, Ashley. She played in the game while I cheered her on!


For the record books
On Tuesday of Homecoming week, the University of Minnesota broke the Guinness Book of World Records by giving the most flu shots on a single day, more that 11,500 vaccines! You can watch a video of the event here. It’s pretty neat for me to say that I helped break a world record by simply getting a free flu shot.

Parade Preparations
As you all know, I am a member of the Greek community on campus, and I love being involved in campus-wide events. Every Homecoming, there is a parade that travels down Greek Row (University Avenue S.E.), which is the street where most of the fraternity houses are located. Members of each sorority and fraternity get together to decorate the houses (we call them “house fronts”) to showcase their pride and spirit for the U of M. It’s a lot of work, but the end result is completely worth it. Check out some photos of me and my sorority sisters helping out to make house fronts:



Below is a picture of me helping to prepare decorations for the parade. Basically, we glued thousands of pieces of tissue paper to chicken wire to create a giant picture. Scroll down to see the finished result!



Homecoming Day
Homecoming Day was filled with the traditional parade and then the big game. I could try and describe it with words, but I think it would be better for you to see my day in pictures:

Remember the picture of me with the orange tissue paper? Here is picture of the resulting “house front!” It was three stories high!



This is another house front. This is the first year I saw a 3-D house front. It was pretty amazing!



This is another one of my sorority sisters, Katie. Katie and I were Welcome Week leaders together back in August. Here we are having fun during the parade.



Your eyes aren’t fooling you. Mickey Mouse was in the U of M Homecoming parade! It was the first time he had left the Magic Kingdom in years. Read about his arrival here.



A neat feature of the University’s Homecoming parades is that we invite alumni back to campus to join in on the fun. Here is a photo of the cheerleaders who participated in the 1962 Rose Bowl.







Marching into the Future
As I mentioned in my last entry, each Homecoming has a theme. This year’s theme was “Marching into the Future.” At first, I wasn’t sure what to think of it. But then it came to me: The University has a lot to look forward to in coming years! Just think—next year on September 12th, 2009, the Golden Gophers will kickoff in their new outdoor home, the TCF Bank Stadium. As for myself, I am “marching into the future” as I prepare for life after I graduate. Not to mention, our marching band, the Pride of Minnesota, always marches down University Avenue during the parade that precedes the football game.

All in all, it was a fun and enjoyable week. One of the main reasons that I love Homecoming is that it gives students a reason to take a break from studying and come together to have FUN! Plus, it brings U of M graduates back to campus to show their pride for their alma mater with fellow alumni and current students. It just goes to show that U of M students become Gophers for a lifetime!

~ Trisha